GardenDC Podcast Episode 302: Greenhouse Revival

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with Leslie F. Halleck, author of Home Greenhouse Revival*. The plant profile is on Cigar Flower (Cuphea ignea) and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on "Growing Points" from Christy Page of GreenPrints.

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If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 83: Greenhouses for Home Gardeners

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/11/gardendc-podcast-episode-83-greenhouses.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 256: Perennial Secrets with Matt Mattus

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2025/09/gardendc-podcast-episode-256-perennial.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 59: Gardening with Tropical Plants

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/05/gardendc-podcast-episode-59-gardening.html

Show Notes will be posted after 10/15/2026.

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Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz

Music: Let the Sunshine by James Mulvany

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*You can order Leslie's book at https://amzn.to/4jDK3yR

This link is to our Amazon affiliate account and we may earn a few pennies from these sales, but it wil not impact your purchase price. 

Fenton Friday: Fall Soil Test

After a period of fall-like rainy, cool weather, we are 85+ degrees again today. It is likely the last day in the 80s for the rest of the year, but my Eggplant decided to set new flowers in any case (see pic above). I hope the bees enjot that bloom as I'll be yanking the plant and the neighboring Peppers and Okra very soon. 

Because of the heat, I threw a row cover over the 'Mesclun Sweet Salad Mix' and neighboring greens and Cilantro.

I picked more Okra, Cucamelons, Beans, and Tomatoes.

I still haven't pulled the Basil plants yet to make one last big batch of pesto to store for winter, but will do so soon.

The Blackberry has a few fruits and new flowers on it, but the forecast says low below 50 next week, so I don't expect much more from it.

In the Pollinator Strip, the flowers on the Jerusalem Artichoke are starting to open and get quite top heavy. I tied a bunch of them back as they were leaning out into the sidewalk.

Thanks to Just Good Soil for sending a soil kit to try out. I submitted a sample from our community garden plot and here are the results:

Raw Soil Data

A closer look at your soil, results are provided in parts per million (ppm).

Nutrient	Your Results	Optimal Range	Rating
pH	6.25	5.8-7.0	Optimal
Total Nitrogen (N)	8.22	32.0-60.0	Low
Nitrate (NO3-N)	4.02	-	-
Ammonium (NH4-N)	4.19	-	-
Phosphorus (P)	20.13	8.0-20.0	High
Potassium (K)	32.2	38.0-80.0	Low
Sulfur (S)	8.51	7.0-22.0	Optimal
Calcium (Ca)	673.37	80.0-320.0	High
Magnesium (Mg)	119.58	27.0-70.0	High
Sodium (Na)	15.37	0.5-30.0	Optimal
Iron (Fe)	3.14	3.0-10.0	Optimal
Manganese (Mn)	12.24	4.0-10.0	High
Zinc (Zn)	0.24	0.1-0.25	Optimal
Copper (Cu)	0.08	0.06-0.3	Optimal
Boron (B)	0.15	0.2-0.6	Low

I was surprised at the low Nitrogen (N), but maybe doing this in a bed, where I had just pulled the squash vines, the results makes sense as the soil was likely very depleted over the growing season. The Potassiumm (K) is also low. Overall a good report though. Following their recommendations, I am adding a fertilizer high in N and K, but low in Phosphorous (P) as I am quite high in that. In that same bed, we also planted a cover crop of Field Peas in order to further "fix" Nitrogen in the soil over this winter.

What are you growing and harvesting in your garden this week?

About Fenton Friday: Every Friday during the growing season, I'll be giving you an update on my community garden plot at the Fenton Street Community Garden just across the street from my house in zone 7 Mid-Atlantic MD/DC border. I'm plot #16. It is a 10 ft x 20 ft space and this is our 15th year in the garden. (It opened in May 2011.) See past posts about our edible garden by putting "Fenton"  into the Search box above (at the top, left on this blog).